East Hampton - East Hampton Democrats are heading into a critical election on November 3. After six years of Democratic control over the town board, four of which all five sitting members were registered Democrats, the town is mired in a crippling deficit and the subject of a grand jury investigation. This election year, the East Hampton Democratic Party refused to endorse the two incumbent councilmembers - instead nominating two political newcomers.

Patti Leber and John Whelan both bring a different set of talents to the table, but both hope to "bring a level of professionalism to the board," as Leber put it during an interview with both candidates at the Golden Pear Café.

Throughout her 15 years raising a family in Montauk, Patti Leber has been involved with the community through the Montauk School Board, the Lions Field Project and a host of other organizations and causes.

The first priority? "Obviously, from day one, the finances," according to Whelan. "Some of it is pretty obvious and common sense," he stated, such as cutting down the workforce, which represents three-quarters of the budget in salaries and benefits. Whelan would "start with attrition and provide some incentives for retirement" and begin any layoffs with part-time employees. "Hopefully we can keep as many of the full-time positions as possible." The cuts would apply to everyone employed by the town, including outside consultants. "We need to go in and look at every single consulting contract," with an eye toward renegotiating the necessary ones and severing the unnecessary.

Before anything can be done with the town's finances, "We have to make sure the numbers we have are real numbers," as intelligent decisions cannot be made without a solid foundation, according to Leber, who spent eight years rising through the ranks of Merrill Lynch before getting her M.B.A. in Finance from Rutgers University. Regular and more reliable fiscal reports are key. "You don't know where you're going if you don't know where you've been," Leber quoted an old adage.

Before resigning on Monday, October 5, Supervisor William McGintee submitted the tentative budget to the town board members and Town Comptroller Janet Verneuille, the first step in the budget process and the responsibility of the supervisor as the town's chief financial officer. The four remaining town board members will have to complete the budget process on their own, with Deputy Supervisor Pete Hammerle taking the lead, and submit a finished budget to the New York State Comptroller for review by November 20. Come January, if elected, the Democratic nominees plan to "jump right into that budget and right away," Whelan said, "Just because it's in the budget doesn't mean you can't cut costs."

Of the supervisor's resignation, "I think everyone was waiting for something to happen," Leber commented, though now they're "looking forward."

"I think it's just a shame," Whelan stated of the controversy surrounding town hall, "No one likes to see this sort of thing happen." Whelan went on to "make it clear that none of the candidates running had anything to do with the condition of the town."

John Whelan was born and raised on a farm in Northwest Woods and has spent his entire life living and working in East Hampton. He has always been interested in politics and was a delegate from the 1st Congressional District for Obama.

"It's a shame we got to this point," Leber agreed, "There wasn't enough oversight and the board didn't keep their eyes on the ball," however she hoped that voters will be able to look beyond the party labels to the candidates themselves. "I'm not a registered Democrat or Republican, I'm an independent thinker," Leber stated, "I think everyone should be judged on their individual merit," not solely on the party that endorsed them. Though, "I wouldn't be running on a Democratic ticket if I didn't believe in them," she added.

Despite the fact that East Hampton's current financial difficulties came during an all-Democrat administration, "Some of the basic Democratic principals stay the same," Leber asserted, citing affordable housing and preserving open space as two prime examples. As a planner and architect, Whelan was particularly concerned with affordable housing, not just for providing living space for local workers, but also with regard to ensuring that contracts for the construction work go to local tradesmen. "It's about giving jobs to people who pay taxes here," he explained, "and it can help diminish the trade parade."

Whelan is personally interested in planning and zoning issues, an interest he shares with his father, former East Hampton Town Attorney Duane Whelan, who was involved in the writing of East Hampton's zoning code. "Zoning encompasses so much of what we do," Whelan said, and there are three specific areas he plans to pursue if elected. Whelan would like to see more residential spaces on the second and third floors of commercial buildings, he wants to educate East Hampton residents about how to legally rent out extra rooms in their homes and wants to see more commercial areas in town, getting local businesses and their trucks out of residential neighborhoods.

The most important aspect of zoning, according to Whelan, is "keeping the zoning in tact. Once you start to lax on regulations, there's a short-term gain, but a long-term disaster" for the local community. And bending the rules for some after forcing others to comply is patently unfair, he added.

Leber, a member of the Montauk School Board for eight years (a position she considers more akin to "community service" than politics), leans more toward education. "I've always been involved in education and learning more about everything," she explained. As a town board member that drive would be applied to educating the community about their government.

"A lot of people don't know how the town works," she explained, planning to "streamline things so people have a better idea of how to deal with their government. I would like to keep an open communication," she continued, which goes both ways, "People don't feel like they're being listened to."

"The great thing about the three of us," Whelan stated in reference to himself, Leber and Democratic nominee for Supervisor Ben Zwirn, "is we bring different things to the table."

As political newcomers, Whelan and Leber hope to reestablish the Democratic identity in East Hampton through professionalism and core Democratic ideals.